2014 Education Day speakers

Promoting Conflict in the Classroom. . . in a Minnesota Nice Way. Melissa Palmer and Marshall Stern of the Department of Animal Science took us through the use of classroom debates and other activities we can use in the Active Learning Classroom as well as in the lecture hall.

Melissa Palmer is a teaching assistant professor in animal physiology.

Marshall Stern, professor, is a Morse Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor of Animal Science and a member of the Academy of Distinguished Teachers at the University of Minnesota.

Plenary Speaker: Dr. Teresa Balser. A professor of soil and water science at the University of Florida, Balser is the former dean of the University of Florida's College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.

Topic: Education at the Crossroads: Teaching as if Learning Mattered. Higher education is in a period of unprecedented change. Shifts in funding and demographics, coupled with increasing accountability and technological reliance, challenge us to reimagine nearly all of our concepts about teaching and learning. There are many questions about how to balance the “production capacity” of our human capital against budgetary realities, and how do we manage the increasingly strident calls for “workforce-ready” students? Even more importantly, perhaps, is how do we make sense of the morass that is content and pedagogy? What do we do with the firehose of information produced each year? We are given lists of “best practices” and we are exhorted to “teach scientifically.” We read articles and organize book groups on “what the best teachers do,” and “how people learn.” But still, the overwhelming evidence appears to be that true learning is rare among our undergraduates. Why is that? This presentation explores the ways that the world of information is changing how education happens, and discusses the future of teaching in a world of increasing information and rapid globalization. What, if anything, must change about the way we approach our role and actions as teachers? How can we ensure a quality educational experience for our students?

Social Media Ouches: Panel Discussion. We discussed events over the past year that led to concerns about what students were posting even when the rules were followed. The panel included Amy Pittenger, director of interprofessional education and pharmacy learning collaborative at the College of Pharmacy; Cathy Carlson, professor, College of Veterinary Medicine; and Chris Thomson, student, College of Veterinary Medicine.